Seeds of Amazonian Plants (ebook)

Argumento de Seeds of Amazonian Plants (ebook)

"A stunning work, this is a must have for anyone interested in the Amazon from botanist and ecologist to zoologists working on seeds in dung. As eminent tropical ecologist John Terborgh indicated in the foreword--this book 'opens a window onto a new . . . realm of forest biology.'"--Sue McBean, Biologist

"Cornejo and Janovec devoted more than 20 years conducting research in the Peruvian Amazon to produce this book, an excellent guide to the seeds of some 544 genera representing 131 families. . . . The comprehensiveness of this guide will provide tropical biologists and informed laypersons a valuable field reference for Amazonian seeds, as well as a way to easily identify them to genus level."--Choice

"[A] remarkable effort--with 750 photos of 544 genera and 131 families, it is going to save an awful lot of zoologists (including primatologists) an awful lot of plant-related heartache and uncertainly. Botanists too will almost certainly breathe a sigh of relief that their animal-oriented colleagues might now leave them alone a bit more and stop asking for help with identifications."--Adrian Barnett, Primate Eye

"I believe this guide to be a major contribution to the field of tropical botany. Until now, no such book existed, and the topic is of clear interest and importance to botanists, ecologists, and conservation biologists. This book, with its excellent images of seeds, should be of great use. There are no competitors."--John Kricher, author of A Neotropical Companion

"This is a monumental work. I think of all the seeds I've found on the forest floor that I will be able to learn easily now by leafing through this book."--Rick Condit, Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute

"Some look like brains, some like arrowheads, others like beads, propellers or puffs of cotton. Seeds have evolved many of these striking features to help them propagate in the wild. . . . [Seeds of Amazonian Plants] will help scientists understand how forests regenerate, how plants disperse, and how the varied species of this tropical region evolve together as a single ecosystem."--Anna Kuchment, Scientific American

"The field guide Seeds of Amazonian Plants is a breakthrough for anybody who needs to identify to genus level the seeds of hundreds of common plants in the Amazon region. It will be of enormous use for many people working on conservation, natural regeneration, seed dispersal or propagation of native species, such as botanists, ecologists, zoologists and foresters. There is no other book available with this purpose, and the stunning full-colour photographs will be appreciated by any nature enthusiast."--Isolde D. K. Ferraz, Annals of Botany

"Cornejo and Janovec present with their field guide, Seeds of Amazonian Plants, a unique, easy to use, and exceptionally well-illustrated key for the identification of Amazonian seeds to genus level. Even if it can only present a fraction of Amazonian plant diversity, this book greatly enhances the efficacy and efficiency of research on seed dispersal in the Amazon Basin, helps to improve our understanding of this highly complex ecosystem, and may hopefully lead to implications for its conservation."--Simon P. Ripperger, Ecotropica

"This stunningly illustrated guide features an easy-to-use whole-plant approach to seed identification that provides detailed descriptions not only of the seeds but also of the habit, trunk, bark, leaves, infructescence, and fruit of Amazonian plants. . . . The most comprehensive field guide to Amazonian seeds."--Ian Paulsen, Birdbooker Report

"'Wonderful' and 'most helpful' are the two terms with which I can describe this book in the shortest possible ways. . . . [H]ighly recommend this book to Neotropical primatologists. Seeds of Amazonian Plants will make ecological field work on New World monkeys a bit easier."--Eckhard W. Heymann, Neotropical Primates0Foreword ix
Preface xi
Acknowledgments xiii
Introduction xv
Collecting and Identifying Seeds xvii
How to Use This Book xix
Aid to Identification of Amazonian Seeds xxi
Family and Genus Descriptions 1
Glossary and Illustrations of Botanical Terminology 149